#415 – Playlists

#415 — Playlists

AVID Open Access
10 min

Transcript

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Paul Beckermann 0:01 Welcome to Tech Talk for Teachers. I’m your host, Paul Beckermann.

Transition Music with Rena’s Children 0:05 Check it out. Check it out. Check it out. Check it out. What’s in the toolkit? Check it out.

Paul Beckermann 0:16 The topic of today’s episode is playlists. We’re on to our fourth blended learning model. Today, we’ve looked at whole group rotation, station rotation, and flipped learning. Today, the focus is playlists. The Playlist is another very flexible blended learning model. And like station rotation and flipped learning, playlists are often used in conjunction with other blended learning models.

Also like these other models, playlists need to contain some element of online learning and some learning that is offline. In order to be considered blended, these online and offline experiences should be aligned and work together to support a common academic standard or learning objective.

So what is a playlist? The playlist model is derived from the individual rotation model outlined by the Christensen Institute and by Michael B. Horn and Heather Staker in their book Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools.

Paul Beckermann 3:11 In this model, students are given playlists of learning experiences that are customized to meet their unique learning needs. These playlists can be generated by the teacher or by a computer algorithm. There are three common variations of this model. The first one is a single path playlist. With this model, the playlist is a sequential list of tasks and learning experiences that each student is expected to complete in order to achieve a learning outcome.

In the gold standard version of a single path playlist, every student would have their own customized learning path that aligns with their unique learning styles and academic needs. Some classrooms have access to software programs that can assess, diagnose learning needs, and assign these individual learning pathways. These robust programs can make the creation of personalized playlists very efficient.

However, most classrooms do not have access to this type of software. Because of this, playlists are often created manually by the teacher. Since the creation of the playlist can take an enormous amount of time, teachers are often not able to create a unique version for each student. Instead, they create several versions that will meet most learners’ needs. For instance, they may have a developing, an at-standard, and an above-standard version, and then they assign them to groups of students to provide differentiated instruction.

Despite not being individualized to each student, this approach is still a significant improvement over a one-size-fits-all lesson. And now, with the advancement of AI programs, there’s an increased opportunity to leverage some of these tools to make the creation of these playlists more efficient and less time-intensive for the teacher.

The second type of playlist is a choice board playlist. In the single path playlist, the teacher or computer decided what learning tasks students would complete. In the choice board playlist, however, students are allowed some voice and choice of their own in choosing their learning pathway. As the teacher, you’ll create at least two different pathways of experiences that will lead your students toward mastery of a common academic goal. At designated points in the learning pathway, you provide students with options from which they may choose. This allows them to find the path that best matches their learning style and empowers them throughout the learning process.

While students have considerable choice in a playlist, it’s important to note that these choice boards are not free-for-alls. They’re intentionally structured in a way that students will experience all of the critical learning outcomes regardless of the path that they choose. Choice boards offer both structure and choice for students.

The third type of playlist is a blend of single path and choice boards. In this approach, the teachers provide must-do and may-do activities. The must-dos ensure that all students experience the same core instruction or practice. The may-dos then allow students to customize the remainder of the learning experience to meet their own unique styles and needs.

In some cases, teachers require all activities to be completed for key steps in the process. For other stages in the learning, students must complete a defined number of tasks within a required step in the process. In this way, it’s both fixed and flexible. For instance, there might be a learn stage where the student can choose to read about a concept, watch a video, or experience a simulation. Students must complete the learn step, but they have a choice as to which path works best for them. Similarly, students may have choice in how they process, practice, or demonstrate the learning.

So you may already be thinking about several advantages to the playlist model, and if you are, awesome. Let me call out just a few that I find particularly valuable. The first is student control. Now, as with other blended learning models, playlists provide students with some degree of control over the pace, place, path, and time of their learning. This is empowering and puts a student in the driver’s seat. We know that when students own their learning, they’re more apt to stay engaged in it and take responsibility for the results. It becomes something they’re choosing to do rather than something that is done to them. In every playlist, students should get some degree of choice.

The second is personalization. Personalization is related to student control, but it goes further. Students are not all the same. They each learn differently, have different interests, are at different stages in the learning process, and are motivated differently. Playlists provide us with an opportunity to personalize learning experience to better meet the uniquenesses of each student. In the single path playlist, the teacher can personalize instruction to meet individual learning needs. In the choice board playlist, students can choose options that are motivating and meet their learning styles.

And third, a playlist increases one-on-one teacher time. Because students can work through the playlists largely on their own, you as the teacher are freed up to meet with individual students. Sometimes these meetings are built into the playlist. For instance, step three might be a teacher meeting. When students get to this part of the playlist, they come and meet with you. In other cases, you can move about the room and check in with students as you see fit. When combined with station rotation, students can complete their playlists in one of the stations, while another station can be a face-to-face teacher station.

If you decide that the playlist approach is right for you and your students, you might consider following this five-step process to help guide you through the playlist creation.

Step number one, identify your learning outcome. This is always where you should begin. Everything you design for your playlist should help guide students toward mastery of that learning standard. In conjunction with this learning target, consider how you want your students to demonstrate their learning. Your playlist should be designed as a pathway toward that outcome, and everything in it should be aligned to this learning goal.

The second step is to identify the necessary steps in the learning experience. Because students will be working through their playlist mostly on their own, you’ll want to organize the learning tasks in a way that will be easy to understand and navigate. Here are a few popular frameworks that you might choose from to organize your playlist. Notice how they’re all very simple to grasp and can be used to frame choices in the learning process. Learn it, practice it, teach it. Another sequence is learn, process, demonstrate. Yet another three-step sequence is learn, create, and show or engage, explore, and explain. Another is watch, read, and make. These are very simple structures that can guide the learning process and are easy for students to understand.

The third step is to decide if you will use a single path playlist or a choice board playlist. Both of these options can be effective and have their advantages. As you make your choice, consider your needs, the needs of your students, and how much time you have available to create your playlists.

The fourth step is to choose a format. This is where you can have some fun and be creative. You might gamify the experience by designing your playlist as a tic-tac-toe or a bingo board. You could design the activity so students need to earn a certain number of points to complete their board. In some cases, you might empower students to learn about a concept, practice it, and then become the teacher, showing what they’ve learned. The choice is yours. If you’re interested in accessing some templates to get you started, we’ve got some at AVID Open Access. We’ll put some links in the show notes for the episode, and you can get them there, or you can go to avidopenaccess.org and search for templates.

And finally, step number five is to develop the learning activities. This is a key part of the process. You’ll need to design the learning activities so that students can learn and master the learning outcomes you’ve selected. It’s essential that if students are given choice, every path they choose must lead them toward your outcome. It might be a type of choose-your-own-adventure, but all the travelers need to end up at the same destination, and that’s your learning outcome.

To learn more about today’s topic and explore other free resources, visit avidopenaccess.org. Specifically, I encourage you to check out our article collection, “Explore Blended Learning Strategies”. And, of course, be sure to join Rena, Winston, and me every Wednesday for our full-length podcast, Unpacking Education, where we’re joined by exceptional guests and explore education topics that are important to you. Thanks for listening, take care, and thanks for all you do. You make a difference.